The Canada Revenue Agency has begun a series of audits in response to information it recently received information from the French government about HSBC account holders.

The CRA says that, since receiving the information on over 1,000 accounts that are linked to Canadian taxpayers, it has analyzed account data to ensure that the Canadians are declaring all their income for tax purposes. The largest accounts are now being audited, and others will follow, it says, adding that all accounts that are linked to Canadian taxpayers will be reviewed.

“This is just another example of how our government is taking action to crack down on people who unfairly exploit offshore accounts,” Keith Ashfield, Minister of National Revenue, announced Thursday.

“We know that most Canadians pay their taxes and play by the rules. That’s why we are taking aggressive action to recover money owed to Canadians,” he said.

The CRA said that last year it uncovered over $1 billion in unpaid federal tax from Canadian taxpayers hiding assets and accounts offshore or through other international transactions. The agency identified another $138 million in unpaid tax through its’ voluntary disclosure program.